Leaving the Beach to Focus on the Modern Aspects of Puerto Rico

Last Thursday, the day before we finally flew home to New York from San Juan, my wife and I decided we would no longer stay indolent and aimless on a beachfront chaise lounge, but would deliberately plunge into the contemporary life of Puerto Rico. We headed, first, for the Plaza del Mercator (the big, covered, marketplace of San Juan) to gaze at the unfamiliar tropical fruits that are harvested on the island itself and made the mainstay of the residents' daily diet, and then we crossed the street to have a quick and early seafood lunch at El Pescador ("the fisherman"), one of the many local restaurants for residents that surround that marketplace square.

From there, a short walk brought us to the Museum of Puerto Rican Art in a stunning new building that displays the oil paintings done by leading local artists over the past two hundred years (a "must see", reflecting the strong emotions about their culture felt by these highly-innovative men and women); after which we headed into Old San Juan ("Viejo San Juan"), where a modern protest demonstration was the highlight of our stay.

All throughout the afternoon, a group of more than 100 young Puerto Rican women, in festive but modern dress, marched through the streets of that original city beating drums and brandishing placards, banners and flags advocating approval of the Violence Against Women Act that is now bogged down in the House of Representatives in Washington, D.C. At various plazas, they would stop to perform graceful dances and to respond to the cheers of the various onlookers who applauded and shouted their approval.

I am mentioning this not to make a political point (heaven forbid!), but to cite it as an instance of the growing modernity of life in Puerto Rico; in previous generations, women held back by the traditional views of Hispanic culture would never have dared to present such a strong feminist message, no different from what you would have heard on the streets of San Francisco or Cambridge, Massachusetts. It was one of many instances in which we glimpsed a sort of life in Puerto Rico that is centuries ahead of what you see in virtually every other island of the Caribbean.

We mainlanders visit Puerto Rico for the beaches and the surf, for swimming pools warmed by the constant sun, for the sounds of rhythmic music, and for temperatures that make you feel lucky and privileged. But we now enjoy these pleasures in or near a city, San Juan, that is comparable to any big metropolis at home. You arrive in a totally modern airport, take a broad highway into town, and pass not simply the resort areas but the business district of Santurce with big office buildings and graceful parks. You could be in Dallas or Cleveland. And the outward appearance of most of the areas you visit is thriving and prosperous. There are numerous impressive museums and other cultural attractions, a vibrant restaurant scene of many different ethnic cuisines, and a population that is gracious to a fault -- and often English-speaking.

I am of course aware that Puerto Rico has its problems. It has been in recession since 2006 and the unemployment rate is 14%. But it is clearly recovering, and considerably aided by the tourism we Yankees bring to it. It is one of the least expensive destinations to reach in the Caribbean -- if you are flexible in your dates you can often find round-trip airfares of $250 to $350 from most U.S. cities -- and its price structure for accommodations is moderate by Caribbean standards. I thoroughly enjoyed my own recent Puerto Rican vacation.